The Labour Party (LP) has described the telephone conversation between the United States Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, and Nigeria’s President-elect, Bola Tinubu, as worrisome.
Recall that Bliken had phoned Tinubu on Tuesday 24 hours after announcing the imposition of visa restrictions on specific individuals who undermined the democratic process during the 2023 elections.
In a statement released by the Spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State, Matthew Miller, the U.S. senior official told Tinubu that the Joe Biden administration is committed to strengthening ties with Nigeria.
The US Secretary stated that the U.S.-Nigeria partnership is built on shared interests and strong people-to-people ties and that those links should continue strengthening under Tinubu’s tenure.
In a chat with The Punch on Wednesday, the Chief Spokesman for LP Presidential Campaign Council, Yunusa Tanko expressed dismay that Blinken will be discussing bilateral relations with Tinubu.
Tanko, however, stated that the discussion between the two leaders should not be taken as an endorsement, stressing that the outcome of the presidential election is being challenged in court.
He said, “It is worrisome at this point to hear them discuss bilateral discussion at the point in which the issue of election is being challenged in the court of law.
“As we are concerned, we are aware that a statement was issued by those who have been part of the rigging machine in Nigeria’s electoral system. We don’t want to take issue with regard to any call being made to a government that is already seen to be illegal.
“We cannot gratify such statement as a kind of endorsement. We will rather call it a caution to see whether the judiciary will make do with what is already on their desk.”